Chapter 798: Treasure!

The spring rain was still falling.

Xu Wenzu stood beneath an awning in full official robes.

The rain could not touch his head.

But his boots had inevitably picked up mud.

Around Xu Wenzu stood the true upper echelon of Yingdu’s present officialdom.

Half were Yan.

Half were Jin.

Together, they handled the various bureaus and yamen under Yingdu’s jurisdiction.

Yingdu had once been the capital of Great Cheng.

Now, in order to stabilize Jin, the Yan had effectively been developing it as a secondary capital.

“Goddamn it. Those Qian scholars love reciting things like ‘spring rain soft as butter.’ They’ve got too much damned free time. Far as I’m concerned, only men who never do any real work, who spend all day thinking about tea or wine, chasing pleasure or composing verses, have the leisure to sit around listening to rain and admiring the wind until they squeeze out that kind of affected nonsense. People who actually get things done don’t have that kind of time.”

“My lord speaks truly.”

“My lord is absolutely right.”

The high officials of Yingdu around him all agreed in chorus.

An ordinary person would see collective sycophancy.

Someone truly immersed in power would see something else.

Absolute control by the Prefect of Yingdu over the official system beneath him.

When Xu Wenzu first entered Yingdu, his appearance had been so aggressively porcine that many citizens privately speculated about how much wealth and marrow this new Prefect intended to scrape from them.

At that time, Jin had only recently submitted.

The war against Chu had not only tormented Yan.

Jin, being directly adjacent to Chu, had suffered badly too.

When Xu Wenzu arrived... the people below were genuinely terrified.

At one point, rumors even spread that this unimaginably “prosperous-looking” Prefect liked eating the livers of children.

His sweeping purges and collective punishments immediately after taking office seemed to confirm the worst rumors.

But gradually... the previous chaos and endless bureaucratic idleness inside Yingdu disappeared.

In their place came stability and order.

Officials.

Commoners.

People in every trade.

All of them slowly came to understand where they stood, what they needed to do, and what they should not do.

If eastern Jin had been forced into life from a postwar wasteland by Marquis Pingxi Residence... then Yingdu resembled a sick man swollen and depleted after years of war and political upheaval, gradually restored to health through careful treatment.

When Xu Wenzu eventually left the post of Prefect of Yingdu... an evaluation of “great governance” would unquestionably belong to him.

Fatty Xu had already grown impatient from waiting.

But he still had to wait.

There was no helping it.

The “little brother” he could once have crushed in one hand had now grown into someone important enough that Xu Wenzu stood waiting in the rain again and again without daring complain.

Perhaps... that was simply fate.

If the visitor were merely Marquis Pingxi, Xu Wenzu, as Prefect of Yingdu, could have chosen how much courtesy to show.

Whether he personally left the city to welcome the Marquis would have depended on mood and personal relationship.

But the imperial commissioners and procession responsible for the investiture as Prince were already on the road.

The formal ceremony had not yet been carried out.

Officially, the man was still “Marquis.”

In substance... he was already Prince.

That meant the old Great Yan structure, where Prince Zhenbei and Prince Jingnan stood side by side as the two great Princes of different surnames, had gained a new point of support.

Blood and severed heads had paved the road.

Military achievements formed the bridge.

His relationship and tacit understanding with the new sovereign gave the best possible wind.

His own iron-hard ability and unquestionable merit needed no argument.

And that wind had kept blowing behind him.

Step by step... from common laborer to princely throne.

Xu Wenzu reached up and rubbed his fat face.

Then held his wet palm in front of himself.

The glossy surface looked almost like a mirror.

Inside that mirror... there was nothing but helplessness and emotion.

Jealousy?

No.

That had vanished long ago.

By now... he had almost gotten used to it.

Not far away stood a carriage.

Among all the people waiting to welcome Marquis Pingxi, it occupied the most central and conspicuous position.

Two files of Imperial Guards stood ramrod straight.

Xu Wenzu had once worked alongside the First Prince.

The First Prince had said that the only thing the Imperial Guards of Yanjing did especially well... was looking impressive.

Outside the carriage stood a young eunuch surnamed Zhang.

As a great official with the authority of a frontier governor, Xu Wenzu had no need to cultivate closeness with palace eunuchs.

That was a serious taboo.

But he also knew that among Great Yan’s palace eunuchs, three names were now especially prominent.

The first two were twin blossoms.

The third had only just begun rising.

Of the first two... one was Wei Zhonghe, who had served the late Emperor and been deliberately left behind to protect and assist the new sovereign.

The other was Eunuch Zhang, an old retainer who had followed the new Emperor since his days as a prince and then as a princely lord.

A man of the household.

No one knew when Eunuch Wei would finally step aside or when Eunuch Zhang would truly take charge of the Directorate of Ceremonial.

That depended entirely on the new sovereign.

Little Eunuch Zhang was Eunuch Zhang’s adopted son.

He too had come out of Sixth Prince Residence.

One of the family’s own people.

The third eunuch was surnamed Huang.

Yan was unlike Qian.

Qian had a tradition of eunuch military supervisors.

Yang, former Governor-General of the Three Frontiers, had himself been a eunuch.

Yan possessed no such custom.

Send a eunuch to supervise the army at Prince Zhenbei Residence?

Or to supervise Prince Jingnan?

Even if some eunuch truly did not fear death and dared go... would the Emperor dare send him?

And yet now there really was one.

A man who had set a record among the current palace eunuchs of Great Yan.

This time...

Eunuch Huang had genuinely followed Marquis Pingxi into Chu and fought in the victorious campaign.

Before leaving, he personally submitted an official letter to Yanjing saying Marquis Pingxi intended to keep him behind as army supervisor.

And he accepted.

He truly went.

The most grueling long-distance cavalry raid nearly killed everyone involved.

But thanks to years of traveling between Yan and Jin, Eunuch Huang’s body had been tempered enough that he actually endured it.

More than that... he earned real battlefield merit through enemy heads.

When the assault struck Dugu Mu’s army, Eunuch Huang genuinely drew a saber, mounted a horse, and charged together with the riders of Marquis Pingxi Residence.

The heads he claimed were real.

Eunuch Huang had become unbearably pleased with himself afterward.

During the constant flow of reports between Yanjing and Marquis Pingxi after the battle, Eunuch Huang also submitted his own memorials.

He did not boast much.

He simply recorded the course of the campaign from departure to victory.

He omitted certain things.

For example, some of Marquis Pingxi’s more excessive behavior.

Some details that could have been interpreted as disrespectful toward the throne.

He erased those.

Not because Eunuch Huang had been corrupted by Marquis Pingxi.

Not because he had become disloyal to the Emperor.

He simply understood perfectly well... the Emperor did not want to see those things.

Perhaps the Emperor did not care in the first place.

Either way...

Eunuch Huang had successfully gilded himself.

A eunuch who had supervised an army and fought through a victorious campaign possessed a special status inside the inner court.

Eunuchs were part of the Emperor’s household.

In the future, whenever military matters arose, the Emperor could ask Eunuch Huang for an opinion before even summoning outside ministers.

After returning to the palace, Eunuch Huang still could not compare with Eunuch Wei or Eunuch Zhang.

But at the very least... he would possess a little hill of his own.

Little Eunuch Zhang occasionally took fruit and pastries from the carriage and distributed them to Xu Wenzu and the officials around him.

Everyone accepted them with trembling gratitude.

The Crown Prince was half a sovereign.

The rites could not be slighted.

What surprised many people in Yingdu’s official circles, especially those who had arrived with various private calculations, was that the Crown Prince had remained extraordinarily low-key ever since entering the city.

At an age when a child should have been most lively and restless... he barely left the temporary palace created from the Prefectural Yamen.

He focused quietly on his lessons.

Xu Wenzu had met the Crown Prince several times and spoken with him.

The boy’s speech and conduct did not resemble a child his age.

He was courteous... but also rounded and careful in a way that felt surprisingly mature.

At three, one could see the adult.

At seven, one could see the old man.

The Eastern Palace represented the future inheritance of Great Yan.

One could not divide its occupant simply into “good” or “bad.”

But he absolutely could not be stupid.

He had to be clever.

The late Emperor had possessed towering talent and grand strategy.

Even Xu Wenzu, born from Marquis Zhenbei Residence, had admired him from the bottom of his heart.

As for the new Emperor’s political battles before enthronement and the skill of his methods...

Xu Wenzu had seen those clearly too.

Otherwise, he would never have placed his wager so early.

And now... the next generation of Great Yan’s imperial heirs already gave people the feeling that he was far from simple.

Prefect Xu had never respected ghosts or gods.

Yet after meeting the Crown Prince several times... even he could not stop one thought from rising.

The Mandate of Heaven belongs to Yan.

If Great Yan could produce three generations of brilliant sovereigns in succession... how could unifying all Xia remain merely a dream?

There was only one problem.

Xu Wenzu had also noticed that the Crown Prince’s health did not seem very good.

If a child was weak from youth... that was like building a house upon an unstable foundation.

Ai.

...

Inside the carriage...

Ji Chuanye sat wrapped in bedding, leaning against the wall and dozing.

Little Eunuch Zhang lifted the curtain and climbed inside.

He intended to tuck the blanket more tightly around his master.

But the young Crown Prince had already opened his eyes.

“Has Marquis Pingxi not arrived yet?”

“Reporting to Master, it should still be a little while. Master, perhaps this slave should escort you back to the residence to rest first. It is cold outside. Jin’s climate is different from the capital. We absolutely cannot let you catch a chill.”

“Father said Uncle Zheng is someone I can trust for my entire life. Someone who can protect me for my entire life. I am only waiting a little longer. How could I go back and rest?”

Little Eunuch Zhang could only nod.

“Then should this slave have them bring up another charcoal brazier?”

“Too dry. No need.”

The Crown Prince reached out and picked up a snuff bottle.

Little Eunuch Zhang hesitated.

He looked as though he wanted to object.

The Crown Prince lifted the bottle and inhaled twice.

His expression recovered a little spirit.

“When Uncle Zheng arrives, I have to leave the carriage and greet him. I am Great Yan’s Crown Prince. Outside the palace, I represent Father Emperor’s face. I cannot let the officials see a listless Crown Prince.”

At that moment... noise rose outside.

Little Eunuch Zhang immediately slipped out to look.

He returned very quickly.

“Master, Marquis Pingxi has arrived.”

The Crown Prince threw off the blanket and stood.

He spread his arms.

Little Eunuch Zhang stepped forward and adjusted his clothing.

“The last time I saw Uncle Zheng was at Eldest Uncle’s home. Uncle Zheng even taught us to sing.”

“Master, this slave does not dare say much about other things, but this slave believes Marquis Pingxi Residence will certainly be fun. There are fewer rules than inside the palace, and Marquis Pingxi himself is genuinely a very amusing man.”

Ji Chuanye looked at Little Eunuch Zhang.

He smiled.

“You said... amusing?”

Little Eunuch Zhang nodded first.

Then froze.

Afterward, he backed away half a step, dropped to his knees, and slapped himself across the face.

“This slave misspoke. This slave misspoke.”

“Little Zhang, what are you doing? Marquis Pingxi really is a very good person.”

The Crown Prince smiled.

Then... with Little Eunuch Zhang supporting him, he stepped out of the carriage.

Outside... a formation of black-armored riders had already appeared.

Great Yan’s Black Dragon Banners and the Double-Headed Eagle Banners snapped in the wind.

The murderous aura lingering around these riders had not fully faded.

Whenever they rode beside their Marquis... a natural arrogance appeared in them, as though they looked down upon all directions.

Yingdu’s officials and prominent men immediately turned their attention toward Xu Wenzu.

Everyone hesitated over whether the man approaching should be welcomed according to the rites owed a Marquis... or the rites owed a Prince.

For a Marquis, kneeling was not strictly required.

A formal salute would suffice.

Of course, kneeling was allowed.

For a Prince... there was nothing to discuss.

Everyone knelt.

Xu Wenzu spoke.

“Everything follows the formal rites of court. The investiture ceremony has not been held yet. Why are you all so anxious?”

From the raised platform before the carriage... the Crown Prince turned toward Little Eunuch Zhang.

“Little Zhang.”

“This slave is here.”

“Prince Pingxi has arrived.”

“This slave understands.”

Little Eunuch Zhang straightened.

He shouted:

“Eastern Palace Guards, hear the order!”

Every guard around them snapped upright.

“Kneel to welcome His Highness the Prince!”

The guards planted their weapons and dropped to one knee.

Together, they shouted:

“We kneel before His Highness Prince Pingxi. May Your Highness enjoy health and fortune!”

The Crown Prince had taken the lead.

In terms of etiquette... no one present could possibly give a more authoritative interpretation.

And once the Eastern Palace Guards acted, the Yingdu officials around them no longer had any reason to hesitate or worry.

They all dropped to their knees.

“We kneel before His Highness Prince Pingxi. May Your Highness enjoy health and fortune!”

“We kneel before His Highness Prince Pingxi. May Your Highness enjoy health and fortune!”

Their earlier hesitation had never truly been about the rites themselves.

Everyone knew Marquis Pingxi’s elevation to Prince was already virtually certain.

If they could flatter him early, why would they not?

A salute cost nothing.

What they had worried about was whether greeting him as Prince ahead of the formal investiture might later be interpreted as declaring themselves dogs of Prince Pingxi Residence.

If the political wind changed... how would they escape that label?

Now... there was nothing left to worry about.

Xu Wenzu saw the scene and merely smiled.

Then he led the high officials beside him in kneeling to welcome the princely procession as well.

Zheng Fan rode slowly forward atop his Pixiu.

When he passed Xu Wenzu, he paused briefly.

Xu Wenzu looked up.

Their eyes met for a moment.

Both gave the slightest nod.

The Crown Prince was here.

Naturally, Zheng Fan had to greet him first.

Xu Wenzu understood.

He did not mind.

The Pixiu continued through the kneeling crowd.

The beast took extraordinary care with every step, trying not to splash too much muddy water.

Its gait was positively refined.

Little Eunuch Zhang saw Zheng Fan approaching and dropped to his knees too.

The Crown Prince remained standing.

He wore a smile and watched Zheng Fan draw closer.

At last...

Zheng Fan’s Pixiu stopped before the carriage.

The carriage was tall.

The Pixiu was tall too.

So the two sides were roughly level.

By ordinary principle... a sovereign was a sovereign.

A subject was a subject.

The direct legitimate line of the imperial house occupied the absolute highest place in any state.

From top to bottom...

Empress Dowager.

Emperor.

Crown Prince.

That was why the Crown Prince’s arrival had shaken all Yingdu.

Princes had come before.

Marquises had come.

Imperial princes had come.

But never a genuine “sovereign” or even “half-sovereign.”

The newly established Crown Prince stood here.

By the rules... even Prince Pingxi, whose status was similarly transcendent, should salute him.

At least... that was what etiquette said.

That was how it should be done.

Unfortunately...

Zheng Fan had personally watched the two great Princes of the previous generation treat the imperial family with casual ease.

They knelt to the Emperor in public.

Give him face.

Complete the ritual.

But imperial princes?

Even the Crown Prince...

Back then, in the roast duck shop, it was the Crown Prince who had gone forward first to salute Prince Jingnan and Prince Zhenbei.

Prince Pingxi did not bow.

Instead... he reached out.

He lifted the still-small Crown Prince from the carriage platform and placed the boy in front of himself on the Pixiu.

Then he pinched Ji Chuanye’s cheek.

“You’ve grown taller. A little thinner too.”

“Uncle Zheng, you seem a little darker.”

“Hahahahaha.”

Zheng Fan laughed.

“Got sunburned fighting in Chu. I’ll pale again after resting for a while.”

Zheng Fan did not immediately tell the officials kneeling below to rise.

Instead, he first looked toward the Eastern Palace Guards near the carriage.

Then toward the group of young civil officials kneeling nearby.

Their ranks were not high.

But every one of them carried an excellent scholarly bearing.

“All right. Go back and report to His Majesty. Tell him the Crown Prince is now in Zheng Fan’s hands. You can return and deliver your report.”

The Eastern Palace Guards said nothing.

The young civil officials serving as Eastern Palace instructors were less pleased.

One of them took the lead.

“Your Highness, we were appointed by the Son of Heaven as instructors of the Eastern Palace. We are teachers of the Crown Prince, entrusted to transmit learning, resolve doubts, and educate the heir of the state. Our duty toward the Crown Prince’s instruction...”

“I am Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince. On this matter... I decide.”

The instructors froze.

Only then did they remember that His Majesty had genuinely appointed Marquis Pingxi Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince.

True... that office had long since drifted away from the literal meaning of “teacher of the Crown Prince” and become primarily an honorary dignity.

But if someone insisted on taking it literally... the Grand Tutor absolutely possessed decisive authority over the Crown Prince’s education.

Even they were nominally his subordinates.

“Come. Go home with Uncle Zheng.”

At home, Ji Chengjue had taught his child to call Zheng Fan “Uncle.”

But Zheng Fan had always considered Little Sixth his younger brother.

One relationship could be counted one way.

The other could be counted another.

Everyone used whatever suited him.

The Crown Prince spoke.

“Father Emperor ordered Chuanye to go to Stone Mountain and pay respects to the founding Emperor of Great Cheng.”

“Oh? You haven’t gone yet?”

“Not yet.”

“Fine. Uncle Zheng will take you.”

Zheng Fan swept his gaze around.

If they were going to pay respects... they needed to bring someone.

“Where’s Prince Cheng?”

He had not seen any procession from Prince Cheng Residence among the people welcoming him.

Little Eunuch Zhang’s mouth twitched instinctively.

Prince Cheng Residence had been terrified half to death by that confinement order.

And His Highness... had apparently forgotten it entirely.

Zheng Fan truly had forgotten.

He had only just returned from a war.

There had been far too much going on.

But very quickly... he remembered.

Then he laughed to himself.

He was mocking his own poor memory.

But in the eyes of Yingdu’s kneeling officials...

Prince Pingxi was instead displaying his authority.

One casual order from him... and Prince Cheng Residence remembered it with absolute obedience, not daring cross the line even once.

“We won’t delay.” Zheng Fan looked toward Little Eunuch Zhang. “Go summon Prince Cheng. I’ll give him half an hour. Have him come out and accompany us to Stone Mountain.”

“This slave obeys!”

Little Eunuch Zhang immediately rose, found a horse, and rode into Yingdu to convey the “Prince’s order.”

Zheng Fan then called to the people around him.

“My lords, I won’t enter the city. Thank you for coming out into the rain to welcome me.”

“Your Highness is too courteous.”

“It is only proper.”

“Congratulations on Your Highness’s victorious return.”

“Prefect Xu.”

“This official is here.”

Xu Wenzu had already been surrounded by others and brought closer.

“I brought back Great Chu’s Grand General Nian Yao and the head of Pillar of State Dugu Mu. Trouble Prefect Xu to send them onward to Yanjing.”

“This official accepts the order.”

Once your status climbed high enough... you could escape most empty social courtesies.

Zheng Fan had no intention of remaining here to chat with these officials and cultivate connections.

After exchanging one more glance with Xu Wenzu... he rode his Pixiu back toward his own force.

The rain was still falling.

Worried the child might grow cold, Zheng Fan removed his own cloak and wrapped it around the Crown Prince.

“Your body is a little weak.”

“Father Emperor said Uncle Zheng should help me recover. Father Emperor said Uncle Zheng is the best at knowing how to live well.”

“Heh-heh.”

Zheng Fan reached around from behind, patted the boy’s head, and ruffled his hair.

“No problem. After we pay respects at Stone Mountain, Uncle will take you home. Your Elder Brother Tian Tian is there. He’ll be very happy to have a little brother. You’ll eat and live with your Elder Brother Tian Tian. Let him look after you.”

Tian Tian had been too lonely from childhood.

Too sensible.

Ordinary playmates did not really suit him.

This little Crown Prince... might.

Siniang and the Princess were both pregnant now.

Before long, Zheng Fan’s own two children would be born.

Older children taking care of younger ones was perfectly natural.

Let Tian Tian practice first by taking care of one little brother.

“Chuanye has wanted to meet Elder Brother Tian Tian for a long time.”

“Mm.”

Yingdu’s officials withdrew after the welcome ceremony.

They did not disperse completely.

Instead, many gathered around a prison cart.

Dugu Mu’s head did not hold much interest.

It had already been treated to prevent decay.

Most people merely looked once, clicked their tongues, and moved on.

The living Grand General Nian... that was another matter.

Officials stared at him again and again.

Some even began composing poems and verses to commemorate the day.

Prince Cheng Situ Yu arrived on horseback with several household servants.

Half a year had passed.

He had grown taller.

And thinner.

The last time Marquis Zheng entered Yingdu, he punished Prince Cheng Residence severely and drew out an enormous case in the process.

According to Xu Wenzu’s original plan, Situ Yu should have been stripped of the title and replaced with some collateral member of the Situ Clan.

Then came the late Emperor’s death and the new sovereign’s enthronement.

More importantly, Zheng Fan had smashed through the situation in Yanjing by killing Zhao Jiulang.

That caused the Chief Minister’s planned arrangements across many different lines to lose their central control.

Afterward, Prince Cheng Residence behaved with almost absurd obedience.

Xu Wenzu did not continue using the knife.

The matter faded into a tacit settlement.

The detailed report, naturally, had long since been sent to Yanjing.

The late Emperor should have known.

He did not act.

Little Sixth should have read the matter after ascending the throne.

He did not act either.

The leverage remained in their hands.

Whenever they wished to remove Situ Yu, it would require little more than one sentence.

And the longer they waited... the less resistance and disturbance such a removal would provoke.

From the Emperor’s perspective... stability mattered more.

As for the pregnant Wenren woman and whatever Xu Wenzu ultimately did with her...

Zheng Fan had never asked.

Prince Pingxi was kindhearted.

He could not bear hearing stories that might prove bloody or cruel.

Situ Yu reined in before Zheng Fan.

He dismounted.

Then knelt.

“This little Prince pays respects to Your Highness Prince Pingxi. May Your Highness enjoy health and fortune!”

Prince Cheng was a Prince of the Blood in terms of title.

Strictly speaking, even after Zheng Fan’s investiture ceremony was completed, Situ Yu’s formal rank still stood above his.

But Yan did not care much about that kind of distinction.

From court to countryside, everyone recognized military nobility as superior to ordinary nobility.

And a man raised to Prince through military achievement... was understood as standing directly alongside the two great Princes who had come before.

“Rise,” Zheng Fan said. “The Crown Prince is going to Stone Mountain to pay respects to the founding Emperor of Great Cheng. Come with us. This Marquis cannot delay long. Matters in Chu are not yet completely settled, so we’ll keep everything simple.”

“This little Prince obeys Your Highness’s instruction.”

This time, there was no enormous procession.

Nothing like Zheng Fan’s previous visit to Stone Mountain, when Yingdu’s great houses and powerful men had followed in one mass of carriages.

The travelers now were only Marquis Zheng carrying the Crown Prince, his escort force, and Situ Yu with several household servants.

It was rushed.

Like completing an assigned task.

And truthfully... that was exactly what it was.

Along the road, Little Eunuch Zhang worried constantly that the Crown Prince, seated atop the Pixiu, might catch a chill in the wind.

The Crown Prince himself thoroughly enjoyed the sensation of the beast flying forward like wind and lightning.

The late Emperor had accomplished many things even an Emperor raised on horseback would never have accomplished.

But he had not been an Emperor raised on horseback.

As for Ji Chengjue... that bastard had begun preserving his health early.

Among the present Emperor’s brothers, even the Third Prince, who had loved poetry and songs, had died long ago.

Of the six brothers who remained... only the First Prince genuinely knew how to wield weapons.

The Fourth Prince counted as half.

So the Crown Prince rarely had the opportunity to experience this kind of exhilarating ride.

Encouraged by Marquis Zheng... he shouted at the top of his lungs several times.

He loved it.

At last...

Stone Mountain appeared.

“Uncle Zheng, there is also a Stone Mountain near the capital.”

In the classical writings and culture of Great Xia...

Stone Mountain was a rather solemn place name.

Outside Yanjing stood Stone Mountain Camp, where troops responsible for guarding the capital were stationed.

Outside Yingdu stood another Stone Mountain... where generations of the Situ family were buried.

Zheng Fan carried the Crown Prince up the mountain.

He had been to this mausoleum before.

The entire tomb complex was not sealed underground.

It possessed a “reception hall.”

Eight hundred years earlier, Great Xia customs had been carried outward by the Three Marquises who opened the frontiers.

Over time...

Yan, Jin, and Chu developed their own customs.

After Jin drove out the Savages... it absorbed many Savage customs as well.

Savage reverence toward the Stars reached Jin society in another form.

It made Jin people more open and less fearful regarding death.

That attitude appeared clearly in their tomb construction.

Inside the “reception hall”... the Crown Prince burned incense very seriously.

Zheng Fan burned incense too.

Situ Yu, actual descendant of the man buried here, was only the third to offer incense.

The rites ended.

They were hurried.

But the obligation had been fulfilled.

Zheng Fan intended to take the Crown Prince away immediately and return to the Residence.

At that moment...

Situ Yu, who had remained quiet throughout the journey, suddenly dropped to his knees.

“Your Highness the Crown Prince, please permit this little Prince to speak privately with His Highness Prince Pingxi. This little Prince wishes to apologize to His Highness properly once more.”

The Crown Prince nodded.

Zheng Fan lowered him to the ground.

Outside, Brocade-Clad personal guards led the Crown Prince away.

The Sword Saint remained nearby.

He did not leave.

After the assassination attempt on Wangjiang last time... the Sword Saint had become far more serious about every detail of Zheng Fan’s safety.

“Apologize?” Zheng Fan asked.

“Yes, Your Highness. Apologize.”

“That matter is already over. I will not deliberately look for trouble with you again unless you deliberately come looking for trouble with me.”

“Your Highness, this little Prince sincerely wishes to admit his fault.”

“Enough. Is that all you wanted to say? Fine. You’ve said it. I heard it. That’s enough.”

“No, Your Highness.”

Situ Yu stood.

“Your Highness, I have a gift to present.”

“A gift?”

Zheng Fan sounded surprised.

“Yes. A gift.”

Determination filled Situ Yu’s thin face.

He had clearly made an enormous decision.

Zheng Fan found it slightly amusing.

“Prince Cheng, there’s no need for this sort of thing between us.”

“I was young and ignorant before. I made many mistakes and angered Your Highness repeatedly. But since Your Highness left last time, I have spent every day facing the wall and reflecting upon my faults. I have regretted them. So I hope this time I can seize the opportunity and show Your Highness my sincerity.”

“That sounds...” rather disgusting.

Zheng Fan had no intention of continuing to entangle himself with Prince Cheng.

Not because he feared anything.

There was simply no need.

Little Sixth had already divided their spheres of influence and even compensated Zheng Fan with Yupan City.

Zheng Fan had no interest in spending further energy on a Prince Residence that had already been plucked nearly bald.

If any longer-term arrangements still needed to be made, the Blind Man could handle them.

Not him.

The war had gone well.

The Crown Prince had been received.

Now... he should return home, accompany his women, wait for childbirth, and enjoy life.

“Just keep behaving yourself. I hope you genuinely understand now what you should do and what you should not do. Remember this. You will not be as lucky as you were last time every single time.”

“Yes. Yes. I understand.”

“Then go back. I’m crossing the river. You return to Yingdu.”

“Your Highness, please wait a little longer,” Situ Yu said.

“You still have something to say?”

Zheng Fan’s impatience was already obvious.

“Your Highness, from now on eastern Jin truly belongs completely to you. The Savages north of Snow Sea Pass can no longer threaten you. The Chu south of Zhennan Pass just had both legs broken by you again. And now Your Highness has been enfeoffed as Prince...”

“Get to the point.”

“Prince Cheng Residence... Situ Yu... wishes to ask Your Highness for one thing.”

Ask me for something?

Heh-heh.

Then you’ll have to add money.

“I already said. Get to the point.”

Situ Yu nodded.

He took a jade pendant from his robe.

Then walked to the northwest corner of the “reception hall” and inserted the pendant into the mouth of a stone beast carved into the lampstand.

A series of mechanical clicks immediately sounded.

At the center of the hall... a passageway opened in the floor.

Stairs descended into darkness.

“Your Highness, my Situ Clan declined too quickly. Our fall from the peak came far too suddenly.”

That was true.

When Situ Lei declared himself Emperor and founded Great Cheng, the Situ Clan had reached its greatest glory.

Not long afterward... the Savages entered the passes.

Great Cheng survived in name only.

Then it was absorbed into Yan territory.

The dynasty had not withered slowly from old age.

Nor had it declined across a century like the old Jin imperial house.

Because it died too quickly... certain things had never had time to be converted into useful assets.

When the hidden entrance appeared...

Zheng Fan naturally did not imagine Situ Lei had prepared it because he feared loneliness and wanted descendants to come underground occasionally and keep him company.

He remembered the Helian Clan treasure he had once found.

Barring surprise... this should be the Situ Clan treasure.

When a man died too suddenly, undigested food could remain in his stomach.

That analogy applied well here.

For a state that died too quickly... even the “undigested remains” of its wealth should amount to something enormous.

More importantly... the so-called Helian Clan treasure had been repeatedly accessed and used by later generations.

Its amount was respectable... but not truly worthy of the treasure vault of a former state.

It had been a little hollow.

This one...

The hidden passage contained mechanisms.

As the doorway opened, lamps mounted along the walls lit themselves one after another.

Situ Yu entered first.

Zheng Fan looked toward the Sword Saint.

The Sword Saint stepped ahead.

Zheng Fan followed behind him.

They descended.

The tunnel was long.

And deep.

The farther down they went... the clearer the layout became.

Situ Lei’s mausoleum itself had probably been built rather narrowly.

Beyond the main burial chamber, the other chambers were mostly symbolic shells.

Most of the available underground space had instead been used to store the Situ Clan treasure.

The most dangerous place... was also the safest.

At the very bottom... a large platform opened before them.

Under the light of the lamps...

Zheng Fan saw chest after chest of jewels.

Rows upon rows of stacked gold and silver.

Sets of fine armor.

Sabers.

Swords.

There were also shelves.

But the shelves did not contain ordinary books.

They held records of waterways, terrain, climate shifts, and countless pieces of regional information from across Jin.

Things that looked useless at first glance... yet possessed enormous practical value.

“This is far more impressive than the treasury of your Residence,” the Sword Saint said.

“Silver buried underground is the greatest waste of silver. It has to circulate before its true value appears. Besides, their family accumulated this over several hundred years. I’ve only had a household for a few.”

Zheng Fan yawned.

Then looked toward Situ Yu, who stood beside them respectfully.

“I used to wonder why, even after things reached that point, Prince Cheng Residence could still cling to so many unrealistic fantasies. Now I understand. With something like this behind you... you really did have the qualification to dream a little.”

Money could not do everything.

But without it...

Prince Cheng Residence would not even have reached the threshold required to dream.

“Your Highness, everything here belongs to you now. Please arrange for men to move it away secretly.”

“Heh. Taking a man’s money means helping him avert disaster. You said earlier that you wished to ask something of me. But you understand, don’t you? The moment this Prince saw the hidden passage... this treasure already carried the Zheng surname.”

Zheng Fan looked at him.

“Fine. Speak. What do you want from me? Protect your life? Guarantee you remain Prince Cheng forever?”

Situ Yu shook his head.

He bit his lip.

Then knelt.

His voice was solemn.

“Your Highness... I want to know whether the child in that woman’s belly is alive or dead.”

“You should understand that the Yan court has always exterminated the remnants of the Wenren and Helian Clans without mercy.”

“But I believe the court would allow her to give birth first.”

Because the child’s identity was unusual.

The child carried the blood of both the Wenren Clan and the Situ Clan.

And the child was merely an infant.

Not one of those supposed Wenren or Helian young masters hidden among the common people of Jin.

“Even if the child was born, even if the child is still alive, that would certainly be among the Secret Intelligence Department’s deepest secrets. Who could interfere?”

“In the Great Yan of today... only Your Highness can interfere!”

“Are you sincere?”

“Yes.”

“This Prince can help you ask. But even if the child was born and still lives... the child cannot be handed back to you to raise.”

“Your Highness misunderstands.”

“Oh? Misunderstands?”

“Yes. I never intended to bring the child back to my side.”

“You want this Prince to ensure the child can live safely?”

“No. What I ask... is that the child... die.”

[End of Chapter 798]